Toy projectile launchers in the form of handguns or cannons which launch a projectile under the influence of compression of air are well known. A device which utilizes a launcher which is generally in the form of a toothpaste tube and made of a pasteboard is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,228,206. This device is held in one hand and struck by the other hand to compress the air therein and to discharge a projectile which is fitted outside of the mouth of the device.
The prior patent art further shows toy air guns which are of a molded material and have a compressable handle to compress air within the molded device and expel a projectile which may be in the form of a ping pong ball. Such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,853,991 and 3,055,352, among others.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,521,510 shows a toy cannon in which a housing attached to a barrel includes a hollow hemispherical bulb of a resilient material which is struck to compress air within the housing, which compression of air is transmitted to the barrel to expell a projectile.
Other devices have utilized a compressable balloon to compress the air for expelling a projectile, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,580,234; and still other devices have used compressable members externally of a barrel to compress air within the barrel and expell a projectile, as exemplified in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,409,653, 4,086,902, and 4,159,705.
This present invention provides a new, improved and inexpensive toy projectile launcher which may be in the form of a handgun or a toy cannon. The present invention is embodied in a very simple and inexpensive construction of safe materials, and is easy to operate.